Final Score: Royals 8, A's 3
At the moment, if you're vying for a spot in the Oakland A's rotation it appears the worst thing you can do is to pitch. No sooner have Vin Mazzaro and Edgar Gonzalez written their tickets to AAA, up steps Josh Outman with a chance to prove that he's the "best of the rest" in a rapidly thinning field of contenders.
1st inning: 5 hits, 4 ER.
2nd inning: Grand Slam (to Mike Aviles).
Outman's line for the evening: 3.1 IP, 8 hits, 8 ER, 2 BB, 2 K.
Oops.
On the "better news" front, Sean Gallagher pitched 4.2 IP of scoreless relief, allowing 6 hits, but walking only 1 while striking out 3. In losing for the 7th straight time, Oakland managed only 5 hits off of Zack Greinke and three relievers: singles by Buck, Denorfia, Crosby, and Pennington, and a triple by Daric Barton.
Watch Brett Anderson's next outing carefully - if he turns in another solid effort, I have to think he'll win a spot in the Opening Day rotation. He just doesn't have a lot of competition anymore.
